The “Smarter” Loop-O’Hare Ground Transportation We are working under the premise that there is no rail system available. Presented by Roberto Clemente High School

How can we improve on what we already have?

We can improve our bus by…..  Choosing an efficient route.  Improving safety  Improving access for all  Improving information technology  Improving Security

There are already many reasons to take the bus. A person doesn’t have to worry about paying parking fees for their car when they leave. It is cheaper than driving, and would hopefully get more drivers off the road.

The route we have chosen to study is for air travelers heading towards O’Hare airport from the Loop.

There is no actual bus route for our destination, even though many people go to that location. The bus route will specifically stop at well known streets, and well populated areas. Why we chose this route.

Our “Smart Bus will use a route accessible to many people. We will be able to stop in highly populated areas. Our “Smart Bus” will stop at… -100 N State (Loop) -Damen and Milwaukee (Bucktown) -Irving Park and MilwaukeeOur “Smart Bus” will stop at… -100 N State (Loop) -Damen and Milwaukee (Bucktown) -Irving Park and Milwaukee

We used MapQuest for our mapping. It offers three levels of mapping.

1 -Fastest Route (not efficient for our buses)

2- Shortest Route (not always the fastest)

3- Avoid Highways (what we will use)

These are the results of our map analysis: Avoid Highways – Total Estimated Time: 1 hour, 6 minutes Total Estimated Time: 1 hour, 6 minutes Total Distance miles Fastest Route – Total Estimated Time: 24 minutes Total Estimated Time: 24 minutes Total Distance: miles Shortest Route – Total Estimated Time: 56 minutes Total Estimated Time: 56 minutes Total Distance miles

We will use the “avoid highways” option in order to achieve our goals of being accessible to many people. This may be the “slowest route” but an almost guaranteed 1 hour trip can be more relaxing than taking a gamble on the Kennedy!

We can make our bus safer by…… Installing Collision Avoidance Sensors.

 The CTA can incorporate the same technology used in a BMW.  This senser system designed for cars could easily be used by a bus.

We can make it more accessible to people with disabilities by……. CTA buses are now installing a new device created by Clever Devices that is primarily created toward passengers that have hearing or vision impairment. This new system shows the hearing impaired what stop that’s coming up and what intersection they are passing.

Also…… An addition to the new “smart buses” are new digitized on-board announcements which will tell and show the passengers on the bus the cross streets for the next bus stop, along with the date and time.

What information will the driver receive? Engine Location Using GPS Upcoming Passenger Expectation Video output from rear camera

How will the driver receive the information? With a Color Heads-Up Display

The HUD Siemens VDO has developed a color head-up display (HUD). The most important information is superimposed on the windshield. The average driver takes about one second to read information from normal instruments. A bus would cover over 40 feet at 30 mph. The HUD cuts this time in half.

Public transportation has always been victim to criminal acts by customers and the public. Public transportation should be provided but be safe for the well being and health of the passengers and the employees who provide and serve public transportation. Security

Terrorism Terrorism is a problem that has grown in awareness after the events of Sept. 11. Public transportation should be prepared for anything and create a system that is as safe as possible. This system should be prepared for attacks like chemical warfare. Chemicals such as Anthrax and Cyanide are easily obtained by terrorists and can be easily used to harm innocent passengers that use public transportation.

From the passenger’s point of view it would be reassuring if there were some type of protection on the bus like the sky marshals that are on airplanes. Bus Marshals

This presentation was created by Clemente students: Carnell Lyons Megan Torres Robert Otero Milton Tanco